Combutol 600 mg: What I Learned During My TB Treatment
Got diagnosed with TB last year and doc put me on Combutol 600 mg tablets. Nobody tells you what to really expect with these meds, so here's what I wish someone told me from day one.
What's in these tablets anyway?
Each Combutol 600 mg tablet has ethambutol hydrochloride. It's one of the main TB drugs that doctors use. My doctor said it works by breaking down the walls of
TB bacteria. I take just one tablet daily since the 600 mg strength is higher than other versions.
TB treatment always means taking multiple drugs together - never just Combutol alone. I take 3 other meds with weird names alongside it.
How much to take
Doc figured out my dose based on my weight:
For me (80 kg), one 600 mg tablet daily was enough. If you weigh less, doc might cut the tablet or switch you to a lower strength.
The big advantage of the 600 mg tablet is taking fewer pills. Before this, I was swallowing three 200 mg tablets daily - what a pain!
Taking it every day
First few weeks were rough getting used to the routine. Now I just:
- Take it first thing morning
- Empty stomach works best
- Wait an hour before eating
- Drink full glass of water with it
The 600 mg tablet is pretty big but has a score line so you can break it if needed.
Got a pill box with days marked - total lifesaver when you're half asleep wondering "did I take it today?"
Side effects nobody warned me about
Here's the real deal on side effects:
- My eyes got weird. About 2 months in, red and green colors looked off. Traffic lights seemed strange. Doc said this can happen with the 600 mg strength and did extra eye tests.
- Joints hurt in the morning. Knees and ankles felt stiff getting out of bed.
- Stomach problems. The 600 mg tablet hit my stomach harder than when I took smaller doses. Had to eat a small cracker with it sometimes.
- Weird taste in mouth. Everything tasted like metal for months. Coffee tasted terrible which was the worst part!
- Fingers and toes tingled sometimes. Doc gave me B6 vitamins which helped.
Doctor visits and tests
Get ready to become best friends with the lab staff:
- Eye tests every month (more often with the 600 mg dose)
- Blood tests to check kidneys and liver
- Sputum tests to see if TB bacteria are dying
- Weight checks every visit
Started keeping all results in my phone notes. Really helped when seeing different doctors who asked about previous test results.
Don't mix with these things
Learned these the hard way:
- Tums and other antacids mess up how the medicine works
- Iron supplements need to be taken far apart from Combutol
- Regular pain meds can be hard on your liver
- Alcohol is a terrible idea (made me violently sick)
Stuff that made it easier
- Set alarm on phone for same time every day
- Drank tons of water
- Never skipped eye checkups
- Told close family about treatment so they could remind me
- Marked calendar with treatment milestones
Questions I had
Q: Can I break the 600 mg tablet if it's too big?
Yes, there's a line on it for splitting. Did this when I had trouble swallowing.
Q: What if I forget a dose?
If remembered same day, I took it then. If next day already, just continued normal schedule. Never doubled up - especially dangerous with the higher strength.
Q: How long until I felt better?
Coughing improved after about 3-4 weeks. Energy came back slowly. Full recovery took months.
Q: Can I take it with food?
Doc said empty stomach is best, but if stomach gets really upset, small plain snack is okay. No milk or dairy within 2 hours though.
Q: How do I know if it's working?
Less coughing was first sign. Then appetite came back. Doc did tests to check if bacteria were dying.
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